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Compatible with the American Heart Association guidelines, The Carbohydrate Addicts Healthy Heart Program is a carb-smart plan designed to correct the cause of your carbohydrate cravings and weight gain while cutting your risk for high blood pressure, high blood fat levels, adult-onset diabetes, and heart disease--without sacrifice and without deprivation!

WITNESS THE AMAZING RESULTS FROM THE CARBOHYDRATE ADDICT'S HEALTHY HEART PROGRAM

Are you a carbohydrate addict at risk for heart disease?Take this quiz and find out.

1. After eating breakfast, are you hungry before lunchtime?2. Do you get tired in the middle of the afternoon and find that a snack makes you feel better?3. Do you eat or snack when you're really not hungry?4. Once you start eating snack foods or sweets, is it hard to stop?5. Does stress, exhaustion, loneliness, or boredom make you want to eat?6. Have you been told that you're overweight or have high blood pressure or adult-onset diabetes? Or do any of these disorders run in your family?

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The authors acknowledge that this book is not for everybody. It is not for the healthy eater who may enjoy second helpings of pasta but isn't compulsive or excessive about eating carbs. It is for the true carbohydrate addict who intensely craves sweets and starches and has a hormonal imbalance that can lead to heart disease if untreated.

The aim of this program is to "help balance insulin levels and reduce the insulin resistance that leads to carbohydrate cravings, easy weight gain, high blood pressure, abnormal blood fats, adult-onset diabetes, and heart disease." The program involves three basic steps: (1) reducing the high-carbohydrate foods that you eat and increasing their quality; (2) choosing supplements that balance insulin levels; and (3) choosing insulin-regulating physical activities. The writing is clear and inviting. The authors explain medical concepts such as Insulin Resistance Syndrome simply and clearly. They also narrate their own health and weight-loss struggles, adding a personal touch. About 60 recipes are included.

This program, while it does emphasize eating more protein and fewer starchy foods, does not raise the fat and protein intake to unhealthy levels, like many low-carbohydrate diets. You are encouraged to eat one "Reward Meal" that is one-third high-carbohydrate (preferably a high-fiber rather than sugary choice); the other meals include "low-carbohydrate vegetables" that are fibrous but not starchy. An appendix explains how to make this program compatible with the dietary guidelines of the American Heart Association and other health organizations. --Joan Price

From Publishers Weekly

In this follow-up to The Carbohydrate Addict's Diet, biomedical researchers Heller and Heller and cardiologist Vagnini present compelling evidence that eating a regular, low-carbohydrate diet can reduce the risk of heart diseaseAand they offer a clear program for sticking to it. According to their studies, heart disease, high blood pressure, adult-onset diabetes and excessive weight gain are all linked to high levels of insulin in the body that are triggered by the consumption of carbohydratesAespecially in individuals whose genetically predisposed chemical imbalances cause them to crave high-carbohydrate foods. For these carbohydrate addicts, certain foods celebrated for their nutritional value (including pasta, rice and, surprisingly, even fruit) can promote the opposite of heart health. The book prescribes an exercise and nutrition program that reads much like any other healthy-heart plan, with attention paid to vitamin supplementation and low-carbohydrate tofu recipes. More helpful, however, is a section on how over-the-counter drugs, like pain relievers, can raise insulin levels in the body, resulting in carbohydrate cravings. This intelligently written book has much to offer those wanting to maintain a healthy heart. (Sept.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Top customer reviews

I have a BMI of 19.5 (skinny), but have type II diabetes. My Endocrinologist says I'm the only skinny type 2 she has out of hundreds. When I eat per the dieticians direction, which is less than 40g carbs/meal, but no restrictions on how often I can eat, I have fasting blood sugar in the upper 130's. But when I eat according to this book, I'm 30+ points below that. If you have the problem in this book (hyperinsulinemia), you should try their diet - it works. Mostly overweight people have the problem (because excess insulin release causes you to store fat), so just because I'm skinny don't think it won't work for you - you are the target population!

I got this book because I wanted to loose about 15 lbs that refused to budge with other diets & exercise. But I knew I could never completely give up white flour/sugar foods (hey, I'm Italian, I need my pasta -- and baking is my passion!) The Carb Addict's Healthy Heart Program helped me greatly reduce the amount & frequency of refined "unhealthy" carbs in my diet without having to give them up completely. I read the original Carb Addict's Diet first, but didn't trust its use of artificial sweeteners & unlimited saturated fats -- and sure enough the Hellers' more recent research found these to be no-no's.

Honestly, I usually eat more Reward Meal carbs than the recommended 1/3-1/3-1/3 protein-veggies-carbs balance (sometimes twice as much carbs) & not always with salad...yet I still lost weight & rarely get hungry or have carb cravings. However, I do make sure my RM always has all 3 components (protein, low-carb veggies & carbs) and NEVER eat carbs outside the RM. Overall, I find CAHHP to be a totally live-able eating plan. In 4 months I'm even lower than my original goal weight (lost a total of 17 pounds). I can stay on the plan but still have a normal dinner with my husband & even enjoy occasional home-baked treats (a gooey cinnamon roll tonight)! I didn't have to throw away my beloved rice, bread, or chocolate. I feel CAHHP is so much healthier and easier to stick with than extreme low-carb or low-fat diets.

CAHHP will be easier if you're willing to try a variety of low-carb veggies, and if you make time to cook at home (I make extra for handy leftovers, and always keep pre-washed/chopped salad greens in the fridge). You COULD follow it if you eat out a lot or are very picky, but it's more difficult. This diet changed my tastes & you may find you enjoy foods you didn't like before. I find it easier most days to just have a low-carb "brunch" around 11 a.m.; that way I only have to figure out one low-carb meal per day. I try not to get too obsessed with following every little recommendation in this book (eliminating ALL glutamates & caffeine, adding every single supplement, zero saturated fats, etc)! I take steps in those directions but, as the Hellers say, don't demand perfection from myself. I still follow the original CAD's list of low-carb veggies (summer squash, turnips, eggplant, etc) & I eat SMALL amounts of ketchup, soy sauce, etc. I feel CAHHP is too restrictive in this area, for all but the most carb-sensitive people.

Bottom line: the CAHHP basic plan is pure genius...stick with it, then experiment with the various options they give, listening to your body, to see what works best for you. The Hellers themselves often say there's no "one-size-fits-all" plan.

***UPDATE 3/18/08***: WELL IT'S 1 YEAR SINCE I STARTED CAHHP & THE WEIGHT HAS STAYED OFF! HOWEVER, UNFORTUNATELY MY CHOLESTEROL WENT UP ALMOST 25 POINTS TO 222! THIS ISN'T SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN ON CAHHP, BUT MAY BE DUE TO HEREDITY, OR NOT BALANCING MY REWARD MEALS PERFECTLY. I REALIZED MY CONSUMPTION OF ANIMAL PRODUCTS ALMOST DOUBLED SINCE STARTING CAHHP, SO I FOUND ANOTHER BOOK I HIGHLY RECOMMEND: 'CARB-CONSCIOUS VEGETARIAN' BY ROBIN ROBERTSON. THIS IS A COOKBOOK THAT EXPLAINS A LITTLE ABOUT 'GOOD CARBS VS BAD CARBS' AND THE GLYCEMIC INDEX/LOAD, PLUS HAS DELICIOUS *LOWER*-CARB VEGAN RECIPES (REALLY, I PROMISE!).

SO NOW I EAT 1-2 VEGAN LOWER-CARB MEALS AND 1 REGULAR MEAT/CARBS/VEGGIES REWARD MEAL EACH DAY. I WAS WORRIED I'D GAIN BACK THE WEIGHT SINCE THE VEGAN MEALS CONTAIN CAHHP 'FORBIDDEN FOODS' & AREN'T AS LOW-CARB AS CAHHP RECOMMENDS, BUT MY CHOLESTEROL DROPPED BACK DOWN TO 197 IN JUST A MONTH & MY WEIGHT HAS REMAINED STABLE. THERE'S MORE TO LOW-CARB THAN JUST CARB GRAMS & FOOD RESTRICTIONS - YOU HAVE TO LOOK AT HOW FOODS AFFECT BLOOD SUGAR. ALSO HELPFUL ARE ANY OF DANA CARPENDER'S LOW-CARB COOKBOOKS (MINUS THE RECIPES WITH ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS). DON'T GIVE UP! DO YOUR RESEARCH AND YOU CAN CUSTOMIZE A HEALTHY LOW-CARB DIET TO WORK FOR YOU!

This book has the same program as the original Carbohydrate Addict's book, but also some additional information that applies to heart health. I recommend it to anyone with heart problems, or a family history.